Casual Temple

TRANSCRIPT

(Transcript is auto-generated; errors are unintentional.)

00:00:02 Merrily

This is the Casual Temple podcast, and you're listening to episode #8 and I'm your host Merrily Duffy. Casual Temple is a place to discuss the many ways we're connected to the unseen world and how that empowers us to know our true selves. This week, I'm thrilled to have Trista Dedmon as our guest join us for a captivating discussion as we delve into Trista's profound insights into your home.

00:00:22 Merrily

Trista describes how a cult teaching is conserved as a surprising guide in individual development. Drawing from your experience as an astrologer, our conversation extends to practical tips on integrating astrology into your daily life. Find out how astrology can aid in your own personal alchemy. I'm so excited to share this awesome and informative conversation with Trista, so let's get into it.

00:00:44 Merrily

Thank you all for joining us here at the casual temple. Our guest today is Tristan Dedman, a designer, former astrologer practicing Mystic and she currently owns Lucida Mystica, which is an occult wear shop that blends esotericism with everyday clothing.

00:01:00 Merrily

She also created and hosted the Liberate Yourself Podcast, which ran for 31 episodes and focused on discussions around personal sovereignty and self discovery during our current system breakdown.

00:01:10 Merrily

Thank you, Trista, for making the time and welcome.

00:01:15 Trista

Thank you for having me. It's just exciting.

00:01:17

Yes, thank you.

00:01:19 Merrily

You're my first also podcast host, so thank you.

00:01:23 Trista

Yeah, that's being that's being generous. I only like a few episodes and I still I can't listen to them.

00:01:30 Trista

But yeah, happy.

00:01:30 Merrily

Ohh gosh I know. I yeah, I hear that. I'm noticing all the items that I do.

00:01:33 Trista

I'll do my best.

00:01:39 Speaker 3

Go back and listen.

00:01:40 Trista

Ohh man, when you go through editing, yeah, it's it's amazing. You have no idea.

00:01:46 Merrily

Yeah, but whatever. It's out there. It's.

00:01:48 Trista

How much do you do that?

00:01:48

All good.

00:01:50 Merrily

So I'm just going to kind of just jump in to some questions that I have. So what I have is to kick us off is what is your earliest memory of a spiritual or paranormal experience or event?

00:02:08 Trista

Yeah, I don't know if it's.

00:02:11 Trista

Like one event. I mean what I can explain is just kind of.

00:02:15 Trista

My childhood which?

00:02:17 Trista

I grew up, we're around the same age. I grew up in the 80s in small town, Texas, so very predominantly.

00:02:26 Trista

You know, whatever United States like Protestant Christian, you know, form of Christianity we have here like that was very much the mainstream. But I was always very, very curious about.

00:02:39 Trista

Basically, anything beyond the veil, anything metaphysical, because I could tell like.

00:02:45 Trista

This isn't.

00:02:47 Trista

You know the whole picture. This isn't everything that that we can see and feel our senses.

00:02:54 Trista

So it was really back then, you know, not a lot of information. So it was more through books and so.

00:03:02 Trista

And what I was reading mostly.

00:03:06 Trista

Was, yeah, paranormal experiences. So like ghosts and.

00:03:10 Trista

Things like that, just because it was something that was talking about the metaphysical and.

00:03:16 Trista

You know, phenomena like that. So that's kind of where I was really focused, focusing my attention and my energy. And other than that I would say.

00:03:27 Trista

Really. I mean, I was very, very blessed. Very. I'm so grateful that I grew up. My family has land in Texas, so I was able to be out in nature a lot, just exploring.

00:03:40 Trista

And I would say that is probably how I connected to.

00:03:48 Trista

Whatever you want to call it, source the divine. The other side? Yeah, the metaphysical.

00:03:54 Trista

The mystical so that was.

00:03:57 Trista

Essentially being out in nature and just really listening.

00:04:02 Trista

And absorbing was probably, yeah. Like I said, not necessarily any event, but.

00:04:11 Trista

That is where I you know, first remember feeling like, oh, there's something else. And there's so much to explore and so much mystery, I guess to.

00:04:24 Trista

You know to look at, but it was always really confusing because no one around me was talking about it like none of the adults talked about it and.

00:04:31 Trista

It was all in the.

00:04:33 Trista

It was all in the framework of of religion, which also did not make sense to me, you know, because it it just.

00:04:39 Trista

Didn't account for.

00:04:40 Trista

So many things.

00:04:42 Trista

So yeah, essentially I'm sure a lot of.

00:04:45 Trista

People can relate to that as well.

00:04:47 Trista

Oh, for sure, especially in the oh, there's.

00:04:49 Trista

Something else you know.

00:04:50 Merrily

Yeah, this isn't. Yeah. Just like I don't. Especially when you're a kid because you're so open to everything.

00:04:59 Merrily

And you're experiencing a lot of stuff and you're.

00:05:02 Merrily

Thinking and yeah, it just doesn't add up. And then you're having people explain to you well, this is actually how the spiritual stuff works. And you're like I.

00:05:12 Merrily

Don't know.

00:05:14 Merrily

It doesn't sound doesn't jive doesn't correlate for sure.

00:05:15

Yeah, yeah.

00:05:19 Trista

Right, right. It doesn't add up.

00:05:21 Merrily

No, it doesn't. And so and yeah, we definitely are about the same age and very similar experiences. UM, for sure. I I think you had more of the the outdoor experience than I did. I always grew up in, in around cities. So I'm definitely I kind of identify more of a city person.

00:05:41 Merrily

But I totally get the outdoor.

00:05:42 Trista

Yeah, but there were.

00:05:43 Trista

Books, right? Oh.

00:05:44 Merrily

Oh, my gosh, yeah, books. And I. I was gonna ask you if you ever read communion communion by Whitley Strieber.

00:05:54 Merrily

OK, you're lucky.

00:05:57 Merrily

I read that at like age 10 and basically didn't sleep for two years.

00:06:02

Because I was so.

00:06:05 Trista

I totally know if as that was The funny thing, like, I would read about ghosts and scary things, and then I wouldn't sleep and my dad would be so mad because he's like, why?

00:06:14 Trista

Do you keep reading?

00:06:15 Trista

This stuff because it's so cool, I know.

00:06:19 Merrily

Yeah. And it's freaking me out.

00:06:20 Merrily

So I don't know, I might like.

00:06:22 Merrily

That, yeah, for sure.

00:06:25 Merrily

Ohh my gosh.

00:06:28 Merrily

What would you?

00:06:28 Merrily

Say as far as now you're an adult. Like what path have you taken now that you can, you know, really choose and not have to be beholden to, like what your family expects or your community?

00:06:43 Trista

Right. I mean, that's a, yeah, it's a long and winding path. Right, coming. Coming back to it currently. Yeah, I would say, and I don't adhere to any that's that's my advice for anybody. I don't adhere to anyone way of thought or lock myself into any other kind of dogma or anything like that. Yeah.

00:07:03 Trista

But it would basically be.

00:07:04 Trista

Yeah, just like natural mysticism. Definitely a foundation in Hermeticism and.

00:07:13 Trista

Personal alchemy and because that feels like and and occult teachings and and by occult all I mean by that, because it is very, very confusing word. It encompasses a lot of things or can encompass a lot of things and is very misunderstood.

00:07:28 Trista

But literally it just means hidden. That's that's really the neutral meaning of it. And the way that I see a cult teachings is.

00:07:40 Trista

Yeah, basically.

00:07:43 Trista

What many, many Mystics, it's this lineage of Mystics throughout history that have practiced.

00:07:50 Trista

A lot of.

00:07:50 Trista

Times you it it comes down to her medicine because that is it. It originates with, you know, this sage character, Hermes Trismegistus and the Emerald tablet.

00:08:06 Trista

That lays out.

00:08:08 Trista

Seven key principles for essentially how I would say like how reality works like that's what it feels like to me. Mm-hmm. And coming across this material.

00:08:20 Trista

Felt like.

00:08:22 Trista

It felt like more of a remembering or like coming across something. One of my friend of mine summed it up pretty well. Like, you know, it's almost like coming across the never ending story. And you're like, what like there's, you know, it is real like.

00:08:36 Trista

There's there's this whole.

00:08:38 Trista

World that is, is hidden essentially and.

00:08:43 Trista

What I feel and believe is that we come to.

00:08:47 Trista

We find that in this, you know, our our incarnation, if it's something that we've either done in the past.

00:08:54 Trista

Or if.

00:08:55 Trista

It's, you know, kind of pulling us into.

00:08:59 Trista

Practice, you know, study and practice these teachings because really, essentially.

00:09:05 Trista

It's about knowing the divine and knowing that we are all part of the divine and the practices and and elemental principles, and that's where nature comes in. Like the the base elemental principles of reality and how those operate and how everything corresponds with everything else. I mean essentially it's the.

00:09:25 Trista

One concept, yeah. And how we we can take a.

00:09:31 Trista

More direct path in this lifetime of realizing that or evolving or.

00:09:39 Trista

Becoming more self aware and knowing that.

00:09:42 Trista

You know we are.

00:09:43 Trista

Part of that not separate like.

00:09:46 Trista

Like mainstream society would have us believe, or materialism would have us believe that we're, you know, all separate from.

00:09:54 Trista

From everything, so that's a sin, I would say, like in a in very simple terms, that's how.

00:10:01 Trista

That's the basis of my practice these days, and again it does. I I did, you know, study and I still do study occult literature.

00:10:13 Trista

And practice very regularly, but again, I don't adhere to.

00:10:20 Trista

Just one way of thinking, but I always I keep coming back to.

00:10:26 Trista

Those principles, because they're really embedded in in the origins of a lot of mystical teachings and seem to be.

00:10:37 Trista

Uh, what's the?

00:10:38 Trista

Word they seem to not be like corrupted or.

00:10:43 Trista

They're they're perennial, you know, it's perennial wisdom that has has been the same throughout time that, you know, authors have and alchemists has.

00:10:52 Trista

Written about the same things and you know, encoded a lot of times because these things had.

00:10:58 Trista

To be hidden, yeah.

00:11:00 Trista

In the past, but definitely these times, they're coming back into light, which is really, really exciting.

00:11:08 Trista

But yeah, that's.

00:11:09 Trista

That's what I would say. Did I answer your question?

00:11:11 Merrily

Yes, I would say you answered my question and also gave a nice brief history on.

00:11:16 Merrily

The occult. So wow, it was really good.

00:11:21 Merrily

I did want to touch on it because you brought up the word occult and you know it is. It is like 2 like you or maybe I I it's not a scary word because I even remember. Yeah saying to a family member I was like Oh yeah. And, you know, I consider myself an A cultist. I consider myself a practitioner.

00:11:41 Merrily

Of you know those type those arts and then they were.

00:11:45 Merrily

Like ooh.

00:11:46 Merrily

Made a face and got a little and I was like but I understood it right. I wasn't gonna judge it. I was just like, I get it when you see the surface level of.

00:11:49

Right.

00:11:57 Merrily

Of the occult, it looks kind of scary, but then?

00:12:02 Trista

You right, because it has been demonized. Like literally. I mean think of especially through like during the 80s and 90s as satanic panic phenomena like occult was and. And that's why I said occult is a neutral word. Like, it literally just means hidden.

00:12:04 Merrily

Ohh for sure.

00:12:18 Trista

So yeah, it does include hermeticism it does include.

00:12:24 Trista

You know, the more benefic practices, but it also includes black magic, just like the word magic is neutral. There's black magic. There's like it it does encompass, but it it seems that, yeah, in mainstream society, it has been demonized and also just because I I have a an occult clothing shop, which I'm sure we'll talk about and.

00:12:46 Trista

In doing my research, when I look for like ohh cult clothing you know, just to kind of like market research, a lot of times it's associated with like Satan, Satanism and and you know more demonic kinds of.

00:12:59 Trista

Themes I'm like ohh like I forget I'm like ohh.

00:13:03 Trista

But that's what's really cool is that people that do are looking for like more sacred, you know, mysticism kind of occult designs and things like that are like, oh, whoa, here it is, you know, but it's it is interesting. It's a it. It can be a very confusing word.

00:13:21 Merrily

Yes, I agree. But thank you. That. Yeah. Again, like very good and articulate explanation of that in those moments. I'm always like maybe I'll have an A deeper.

00:13:33 Merrily

Conversation with this.

00:13:34 Merrily

Person, but you know, kind of move it, move it along.

00:13:39 Merrily

So thanks for going over your.

00:13:42 Merrily

Your path to date. I know when we had chatted previously, you had talked about.

00:13:48 Merrily

Like reawakening processes, as is how I understood it and definitely I would say it goes into how you explained your spiritual path so far, but how? How have you experienced reawakening?

00:14:04 Trista

Yeah. Who? How much time you got? I'm just.

00:14:10 Trista

I will. I will try to briefly touch on the things I feel are really important because and I think that's is that's also what I was trying to do with my podcast is.

00:14:20 Trista

Have the the kinds of conversations so that people would understand. They're not alone because a lot.

00:14:25 Trista

Of most of the time you are going to feel alone.

00:14:28 Trista

Especially in those first.

00:14:29 Trista

Phases of awakening or kind of remembering or reawakening.

00:14:34 Trista

I know I was it because I. Like I said, I was into all of this when I was a child, especially as a teenager, you know, started to get into astrology and tarot.

00:14:42 Trista

And all.

00:14:42 Trista

The things and something happened in my 20s where.

00:14:47 Trista

And I mean just from my.

00:14:50 Trista

Background. There was like some trauma and I didn't have a whole lot of like parental support or, you know, I kind of had to make it on my own. So I did sort.

00:14:59 Trista

Of put it away.

00:15:01 Trista

In in a way, it's not like I didn't believe, but it's just I I was trying to focus on practical.

00:15:08 Trista

Material matters like IE, like how do I make?

00:15:11 Trista

It in the.

00:15:11 Trista

World. Yeah. And I just kind of felt like I needed to, you know, really focus on. I was. I'm a Capricorn Moon, so I I was just like, how do I make money and like make?

00:15:23 Trista

My way in the world and stuff.

00:15:25 Trista

So anyway around.

00:15:27

I think it was I.

00:15:28 Trista

Was 34.

00:15:31 Trista

I don't know, I just started.

00:15:33 Trista

Thinking about it again, like even from a.

00:15:38 Trista

Sort of mundane perspective like, oh, what's like? I feel a certain way. What's going on astrologically with the energy, you know, just kind of.

00:15:48 Trista

Thinking about those correlations and correspondences again.

00:15:52 Trista

And bringing back in like some candle magic work or whatever, just for for prosperity. I remember I did a candle magic, which is really basic.

00:16:02 Trista

For prosperity and everything, I mean a day or two later, everything that was kind of teetering like I was in a relationship that I really needed to leave. And it just wasn't happening and everything that was.

00:16:14 Trista

Teetering on the edge. Just.

00:16:16 Trista

Just kind of clipped and was like OK.

00:16:18 Trista

Here we go.

00:16:21 Trista

Left their relation like relationship deteriorated.

00:16:25 Trista

Was really uncertain, like where I was going to live and.

00:16:29 Trista

I was in Texas at the time. I had lived in Seattle in my 20s and kind of jumped around to live in a few different places, but eventually made it back to Texas.

00:16:39 Trista

But just through a series of events moved back to Seattle.

00:16:45 Trista

And was, you know, living sort of with the friend or group of friends in this. And they're like basement unit of this house and.

00:16:56 Trista

I won't go into detail, but I just there were some decision and I really feel like this was.

00:17:04 Trista

Yeah, whatever you want to call it the universe or what have you. It was like pulling me into.

00:17:09 Trista

Like reckoning situations like really almost like plutonite transformative situations. And I do have that signature in my chart where.

00:17:19 Trista

You know, if you like, transforming is.

00:17:23 Trista

Just you go through.

00:17:24 Trista

A really deep, deep dive into.

00:17:29 Trista

Like basically just everything gone like losing everything, ending up in that that place where.

00:17:37 Trista

You're all alone, like it's just like these really tough. A really, really tough spot, so.

00:17:44 Trista

I found myself like in this basement apartment, super alone, very just at the end of, like, I did not know what to do, essentially, and that is it. It was this, the kind of environment that I feel the occult will find you again, or it will come.

00:18:04 Trista

Because those resources and those.

00:18:07 Trista

Feelings and and.

00:18:09 Trista

Through synchronicities and everything that was coming back into my life.

00:18:14 Trista

And I really feel like that.

00:18:20 Trista

How we communicate, or at least I do, but I feel like.

00:18:25 Trista

You know, it can be a different perspective for different people, but I just literally like have this relationship and communicate. Let the the universe communicate with me.

00:18:34 Trista

And it's sort of this dialogue.

00:18:36 Trista

I don't like to personify it. I know a lot of people like oh, it's my guides, it's angels or whatever. I I really don't. I I always shy away from that, maybe because that's it. I feel like that's sort of our human nature to want to personify something.

00:18:51 Trista

And interact with it that way, but.

00:18:56 Trista

So I still don't even have a word for it as my as my point.

00:19:00 Trista

Reality was communicating with me. I.

00:19:03 Trista

Started learning, yeah. Started reading more, started learning more, getting back into astrology, really getting into her, Medicis them and and the in alchemy, especially because I was in that.

00:19:14 Trista

You know the first state, the first operation or stage of alchemy is, is calcination when every the blackening, when everything is just taken away and and burned to to ashes. And I was like, well that's that's where I am. So it made sense that that.

00:19:33 Trista

Especially personal alchemy, it would come back into my life because I was literally doing that work already.

00:19:39 Trista

So yeah, and then really.

00:19:43 Trista

What, like synchronicities, were just everywhere so obvious to me, and maybe it's a Pisces thing too. I'm a Pisces sun and mercury.

00:19:53 Trista

Natally and I think that because I mean you are you are too Pisces son and I feel like we have this relationship with reality where.

00:20:03 Trista

Whatever is beyond the veil, whatever is unseen, the metaphysical is more real, or there's less of a distinction between the two, and so that is.

00:20:14 Trista

Yeah. So how I communicate with with reality and it was just coming in at that point, so.

00:20:22 Trista

I guess I.

00:20:24 Trista

I guess that's enough of an.

00:20:26 Trista

It went from from there. It just started giving me more of a.

00:20:33 Trista

I was starting to feel more empowered and like starting to build myself back up and and literally learning a new language. I mean, the transits that were going on for me at that time really pointed to I was going through like a 12th House transit. Jupiter was moving through my 12th house, so it was literally like being removed from society being.

00:20:54 Trista

You know, very introverted, very in the the net the web of.

00:21:02 Trista

Of reality and not so much like in material.

00:21:06 Trista

And also yeah, Saturn was moving through my third house. So there was just this like.

00:21:13 Trista

Almost elementary style like learning and learning language around how to.

00:21:20 Trista

Communicate these metaphysical concepts and these esoteric concepts.

00:21:25 Trista

If that makes sense.

00:21:27 Trista

So yeah, I'm. I'm really grateful for that time because it, you know, definitely brought me to where I am now. And yeah, I just want anyone to know if they're going through.

00:21:38 Trista

That, and they feel alone.

00:21:41 Trista

That's part of it, and it's not forever.

00:21:45 Trista

And UM.

00:21:46 Trista

Yeah, literally just.

00:21:49 Trista

You don't have to.

00:21:50 Trista

Reach out, but it yes it does.

00:21:52 Trista

Help too I.

00:21:53 Trista

I think nowadays my God, we have podcasts and that's what helped me too. Yeah, having podcasts like this where you're just listening to people have these conversations. It's like, OK, I'm not the only one that can be, like, really, really detrimental and really tough to go through. So and part of the reason I started my podcast too.

00:22:03

Oh yeah.

00:22:11 Speaker 3

Yeah, but.

00:22:13 Trista

Yeah, fun times.

00:22:14 Merrily

Ohh man yeah, I'm just there's a lot of visuals that you put in there and yeah, I can sense like that sort of isolation. But you're right, it's definitely part of the part of the process and part of the process is that reaching out.

00:22:27 Trista

Hermetically sealed, right?

00:22:27 Merrily

To you? Yeah, exactly. I'm like, I'm in the thing.

00:22:30 Trista

Yeah, I understood. Like, yeah, exactly. And that that's a really, really important process. Yeah. So that.

00:22:38 Trista

And now I know.

00:22:41 Trista

I mean, looking back the friends that because I lost friends during that time.

00:22:46 Trista

And I can see that if I.

00:22:48 Trista

They had.

00:22:50 Trista

If that had not happened, like they were not in the same energy that I needed at the time.

00:22:55 Merrily

Right.

00:22:57 Trista

In order to really.

00:22:59 Trista

Know myself.

00:23:01 Trista

As well as.

00:23:03 Trista

What being isolated was was doing from I'm I'm pretty isolated. Anyway. I always have been like super introverted and I'm coming around. You know, I'm 41 now and I'm like, you know, that's just who.

00:23:14 Trista

I am and it's.

00:23:16 Trista

Coming through with other systems too, with human design astrology, it's like I just. It doesn't. I don't know. So anyways it it is a really important time to.

00:23:28 Trista

Be able to focus on.

00:23:31 Trista

Like I said, the personal alchemy of.

00:23:35 Trista

Rebuilt and tearing down everything you thought you knew and rebuilding it from the ground up like that just takes extreme inner focus.

00:23:44 Merrily

Oh yeah, for sure.

00:23:45

To be able to.

00:23:46 Merrily

Yeah. I would say there's like, well, there's like a.

00:23:48 Merrily

Couple of things that you said that.

00:23:50 Merrily

Uh, that ignited my brain. But uh, the thing around kind of understand well for me.

00:23:57 Merrily

Understanding my own energy and understanding, I literally have a limited amount of energy, especially to spend around other people, and so and now I'm becoming very familiar. I've been using my calendar a lot cuz I literally have to schedule blocks of time and I'm like I have time for you 2 weeks from now, right?

00:24:18 Merrily

Yeah. And it's not and it's not anything around, like not caring for the person or anything or other people. It's just like I've just understood I am a better person if I manage my own energy.

00:24:32 Trista

Absolutely. It's nothing personal.

00:24:34 Merrily

Yeah, it's not personal at all.

00:24:34

It would.

00:24:35 Trista

Be anybody that I would.

00:24:37 Merrily

Yeah, yeah. And the other thing you said was interesting is I have a friend that she also doesn't personify the energies that she interacts with. She sees, like, abstract shapes.

00:24:51 Merrily

And curves and maybe like lights and stuff. And I'm like.

00:24:56 Merrily

That is fascinating to me. They like all this stuff, comes in a very personified form. That's just how that interacts.

00:25:02 Trista

That's great. I've only been, like, envious of that, actually. Like, wow, you have a name to it? It just. Yeah. It doesn't always happen.

00:25:10 Merrily

Yeah, that's really cool.

00:25:11 Merrily

Yeah. So it's I guess at least my this other person. I know she's like has the same thing. Well, cool. So.

00:25:18 Merrily

You definitely. You know, you had this sort of solitary thing and you're kind of researching and thinking and, like, reconnecting with cult practices. Did you have any teachers, whether they be like teachers, you were personally?

00:25:34 Merrily

Looking at or, you know through books or whatever that you were connecting with.

00:25:39 Trista

Yeah, it's like.

00:25:41 Trista

It's kind of always been a bane of.

00:25:43 Trista

My existence, I've always, always.

00:25:44 Trista

Always wanted in person. Mentor. I think a lot of us have. Like we just. It's something that don't doesn't happen as often.

00:25:53 Trista

But so the answer is no to in person, but.

00:25:58 Trista

I came across the the people that I came across that were I consider them to be my teachers. Well, the main one would be.

00:26:07 Trista

His name is Neil Kramer, and he actually he's English originally, but he lives on the peninsula, which is close.

00:26:15 Trista

Close to us in Washington, the Olympic Peninsula, and.

00:26:20 Trista

He's basically an esotericist, A philosopher and draws together many different forms of mysticism. He's a teacher, literally a teacher. He's a Virgo and he literally gives workshops. And does, you know, podcasts and things like that and.

00:26:37 Trista

He was a saving saving grace for me because he was, you know, just when you find someone that's able to articulate what you're feeling. So that's why I love Virgo. It's like the other side of the spectrum.

00:26:48 Trista

That fills that in for me. They're able to like, articulate things in a way that my little pisces, you know, brain just can't find words for. But he was a huge and still is a huge.

00:27:04 Trista

UM teacher and my on on my.

00:27:09 Trista

Path definitely hermeticist, and even esoteric. He started coming out recently as.

00:27:17 Trista

An esoteric he actually researches and studies and does what's called exegesis, which is like reading scripture and understanding scripture from a.

00:27:30 Trista

First person point of view instead of taking any other translation. But for esoteric Christianity. So what Christianity was before religion, essentially. Yeah. Which is really mind blowing. Really incredible to kind of go back that.

00:27:49 Trista

Bar like basically the going from the Nag Hamadi texts, which are ancient ancient texts that talk about explain like Christ, consciousness and.

00:28:01 Trista

Yeah. Anyway, he's he's a wealth of of knowledge. I would highly recommend him. And it's just like neilkramer.com is his uh website. He's also been like on Gaia.

00:28:13 Trista

Gaia network interviews quite a lot, and there was also a documentary really beautiful documentary that he he made. I don't know the directors name, but I think it's just called transmutation and you can just go and and like stream that.

00:28:31 Trista

Beautiful, beautiful documentary. Just on all mystical.

00:28:37 Trista

Lifestyle practice. How? How you know multiple people came into it and.

00:28:44 Trista

And practice it. And UM, yeah. But I would say he is. He's the main one for sure that I.

00:28:51 Trista

Remember right now.

00:28:54 Merrily

Well, yeah I had.

00:28:54 Merrily

To make a note of.

00:28:56 Merrily

Of Neil Cramer. Because I was a very good endorsement of him as a teacher.

00:29:03 Trista

Yeah, and more. I mean, he's more. He's very like the embodies. I feel like the divine masculine. And that's that's a voice that really.

00:29:11 Trista

Speaks to me.

00:29:13 Trista

We had we had kind of shared that before when we were chatting that.

00:29:19 Trista

What really resonates with me a lot of times is more of like the mental masculine approach to these things.

00:29:28 Trista

You know, I'm definitely working on and I know it's part of my.

00:29:33 Trista

Lifes work to get more into the heart, get more into the compassion, get more into my feminine, which I've definitely have done through my cult practice, but a lot of times the information that resonates with me.

00:29:46 Trista

The most is.

00:29:48 Trista

Through that kind of masculine energy. So I just wanted to say he he definitely embodies that for me. Like, he could probably be too hard, like too harsh for some people because he's just like, no, this is, you know, the thing right. There's just that caveat.

00:30:04 Merrily

Yeah, I'm kind of used.

00:30:06 Merrily

Especially in these sort of these hermetic practices and you get into the cult, there's a lot of masculine energy there, and there's definitely a lot of, like, really fascinating books and authors who tend to be male but very much like this, is it or whatever. And I'm like, I don't know.

00:30:26 Trista

You gotta you gotta balance it out. I know. I got to a point.

00:30:29 Trista

I was when I was studying magic where I was just like, OK, I need to.

00:30:33 Trista

Get away from the like very.

00:30:35 Trista

Yang like OK, let's.

00:30:36 Trista

Get the thing or manifest the thing and I I yeah, I had to soften it out and but there's always a balance, you know.

00:30:42 Trista

Balance is everything.

00:30:44 Trista

Yeah. I just wanted to.

00:30:47 Trista

Give that cause you can.

00:30:48 Trista

Definitely. I think a lot of people can go.

00:30:50 Trista

Very far into the like super feminine woo and everything but not have that.

00:30:57 Trista

Because what the masculine helps do is create order, you know create and our mind needs that like our.

00:31:04 Trista

We need that I feel to like, truly understand something. Otherwise you're just, like, floating and and things don't get grounded.

00:31:13 Trista

Grounded in your understanding of them.

00:31:16 Trista

But yeah, just one without the other. I mean, that's the whole thing. If I have to break down reality or Medicis and the occult, the whole thing is about balance and masculine. Feminine yin Yang.

00:31:30 Trista

Black, white, good, bad. You know, the the balancing of polarity.

00:31:35 Merrily

Yeah, I think even on Sir, on my website cause I explain like a little one sentence about like I consider myself a hermetic A cabalist. And so I was like Hermeticism is the balancing of masculine and feminine and like if you boil it all down, that's like how to explain it to somebody you know but like.

00:31:55 Speaker 3

Course you get into it. It's just like there's a lot, but oh man.

00:32:03 Merrily

And so I know also, we were chatting. Uhm, you were telling me about this term that I think you had said. Some friends that called you the Galactic Empress, which sounds like super cool. That's a cool thing. But I loved your explanation about that. So what it meant to you?

00:32:23 Trista

Yeah, I mean, it's a magic spell. It's. I actually was doing.

00:32:28 Trista

This was after coming out of that.

00:32:32 Trista

Really kind of dark alone time. I knew that I needed to cultivate.

00:32:37 Trista

Like the ground beneath me, essentially, I was still like, not sure about what I was going to do with my life or how to support myself. Like all these things. And I knew I needed.

00:32:45 Trista

To incorporate the element of Earth.

00:32:48 Trista

Which is, you know, abundance resources, stability, security, all those things. And I came across Ben Abell Lynn, who is, I would say, like, she's a really, she's a really interesting author. She's like by day, a corporate attorney, I believe. But she just writes.

00:33:08 Trista

Prolifically about a cult practice, and she has this book.

00:33:15 Trista

Call. Oh gosh, I think it's called the holistic tarot. It's like this big it's it's just a huge, perfect Terra book. But she had a course about shadow work and working with the Tarot and choosing elements to cultivate. So for A and so you choose, you know, a tarot card that embodies that element.

00:33:35 Trista

What you're looking for and.

00:33:38 Trista

Do these practices daily for a year or more?

00:33:43 Trista

And I was working with the Empress for for a long time. Still consider you know myself to be working with the Empress and I. I looked around, you know, I looked around at my surroundings.

00:33:57 Trista

Not long ago, when I was because a friend of mine, very magical friend of mine, we were doing.

00:34:02 Trista

You know, kind of work together and she kind of gave me that name of Galactic Empress just because it's like, yeah, Empress on the earth. But also, you know, as an astrologer and just thinking about the entire cosmos. And I don't know, it is kind of like.

00:34:18 Trista

For fun, yeah.

00:34:20 Trista

Just calling myself that on line.

00:34:22 Trista

Is sort of the spell.

00:34:23 Trista

Yeah. So, but yeah, I was looking around at.

00:34:27 Trista

My surroundings where I live now, I'm like I.

00:34:33 Trista

I am the like the emperor. You know my version of the Empress. I'm surrounded by Evergreen trees. I'm in an apartment on a property that has this beautiful garden. And that just. Yeah, just all these things I was like wearing the clothing that I used to envision. But you don't really think about it.

00:34:53 Trista

Consciously where you just like, oh, I want it cuz it was something about like wearing green like green was.

00:34:59 Trista

The color and I wear all black I have for years.

00:35:04 Trista

But I started incorporating green just.

00:35:07 Trista

Out of the, you know, out.

00:35:08 Trista

Of the blue. So I was like, wearing this like Green Empress dress and looking around. I was like I had the the Empress. I'm like, you know, cause this happens. That's how manifestation happens. It's like it doesn't. It's not instant. But you just look around a year or two later, you're like, oh, this is everything I was envisioning when I was.

00:35:27 Trista

Doing that, that spell or that, you know, magic will working or whatever. So that's.

00:35:33 Trista

That's what that's about.

00:35:34 Trista

It's kind of silly, but it's just a.

00:35:36 Merrily

Spell. Ohh well, I think it it sounds really cool.

00:35:38 Trista

Internet spell.

00:35:40 Merrily

Yeah. Oh, yeah, they have those.

00:35:42 Merrily

Internet spells.

00:35:44 Trista

And that was also sorry that was. Yeah, that was also me working with the feminine. I just wanna articulate that that was part of me because the Empress is like the embodiment of feminine energy. She's pregnant. She has everything she needs. It's creativity like and it just.

00:35:49 Merrily

Oh, right.

00:35:54 Merrily

Oh yeah.

00:36:01 Trista

Flows from her, you know.

00:36:03 Trista

It's that that really raw.

00:36:06 Trista

Essence of abundance and like I have everything I need and it comes from within me. I just. I just grow it, you know. And then the emperor is the masculine side of that that builds the walls around like that creates the the order for that to flourish essentially and be safe. So there's Linda highlight that.

00:36:27 Merrily

Oh yeah, definitely. She's a car. Yeah. Because I'm also, you know, we chatted about this, but like, I'm also have.

00:36:32 Merrily

Very masculine energy.

00:36:35 Merrily

And I'm also very much working on my own divine feminine and definitely the Empress card is one that you kind of look to for all the reasons that you said and.

00:36:43 Merrily

Also, another thing too is just becoming comfortable with my, you know, with my body and my surroundings and making sure that, you know, like I have a beautiful home, the things around me, I love and the people I love and you know, just and being comfortable and not so like, not comfortable and stressed.

00:37:02 Merrily

Out about it.

00:37:04 Merrily

So she's great.

00:37:05 Merrily

Beautiful. Yep. I think we kind of covered some of the questions here.

00:37:10 Merrily

About her medicine. Because you already explained it. So we'll wonderfully. Let's see.

00:37:15

Ohh thank you.

00:37:16 Merrily

Oh yeah, I know.

00:37:17 Merrily

You you took great job.

00:37:20 Merrily

So I see here about like the term occult mysticism which I know.

00:37:25 Merrily

You were sort of or you kind of already explained, but how do you incorporate both? Cuz in my experience it seems to be separate except a few authors.

00:37:40 Merrily

Have blended the two meaning like I think Alistair Crowley is definitely a cult Mystic. And then maybe Dion Fortune, definitely an occult Mystic. But just curious what your thoughts on that are I.

00:37:49 Trista

Mm-hmm. How many?

00:37:55 Trista

Feel like a cult is the umbrella.

00:38:00 Trista

All mystical.

00:38:04 Trista

Metaphysical practice.

00:38:06 Trista

Anything that is hidden.

00:38:08 Trista

And then hermeticism, yeah, it gets tied in there, but her medicine. I know because it probably is.

00:38:15 Trista

Crowley. Yeah. Order.

00:38:18 Trista

I think I think he had one interpretation.

00:38:21 Trista

It's essentially and like everything I I feel like the practitioners actually have their own interpretations, so I don't think there's.

00:38:30 Trista

I would in in my.

00:38:32 Trista

View I wouldn't see it as separate, just that a cult is a very like overarching term.

00:38:40 Trista

Many different practices or or disciplines, I guess within mysticism.

00:38:48 Trista

That's how I see it.

00:38:50 Merrily

Also a great explanation on that I would say.

00:38:53 Merrily

Were are there any?

00:38:55 Merrily

I know you've already recommended some really.

00:38:56 Merrily

Right. Books to look at, including Neil Kramer and then Annabelle when?

00:39:04 Merrily

Are there any additional people that you have looked at that would be quote?

00:39:09 Merrily

UN quote occult occult.

00:39:12 Trista

Yeah, of course. Yeah, definitely. The Cabalian is probably the one to start with.

00:39:19 Trista

Written by the three initiate initiates because that's going to.

00:39:24 Trista

Be a great.

00:39:25 Trista

Foundational overview of the principles of hermetic philosophy.

00:39:31 Trista

Yeah, that's that's really going to be the one that you can spend a lot of time on just reading and really as far as studying a cold practice, I don't know about you.

00:39:42 Trista

For our cult literature, it's really about.

00:39:46 Trista

Reading about.

00:39:49 Trista

So, like reading about a concept or.

00:39:53 Trista

You know, a thought or.

00:39:56 Trista

A way of thinking.

00:39:57 Trista

And just really sitting with that.

00:40:00 Trista

And even setting an intention, it's not to be like read all the way through because you're not really going to absorb it. It's really about absorbing the the material.

00:40:09 Trista

So it's really about, you know, reading one essentially like one principle and just.

00:40:16 Trista

Being open and seeing how that plays out in different parts of reality and the way that.

00:40:21 Trista

I work with.

00:40:22 Trista

Again, the universe, reality, whatever you want to call it is, you know, I remain open. I'm like, OK.

00:40:28 Trista

Tell me you know, show me what this is about and make it a game. Either through synchronicity or information will come in TV shows or, you know, whatever. All these mundane things like show me this principle.

00:40:41 Trista

Out in the wild and and that will happen. You know, if you're if you're really.

00:40:48 Trista

You're really earnest and genuine with it.

00:40:52 Trista

So yeah, the kybalion is is definitely a text. I would say to.

00:40:57 Trista

Begin with and just really take your time learning the principles.

00:41:02 Trista

And then some other ones. Another author of John Michael Greer is amazing. He's extremely prolific, I think.

00:41:09 Trista

Do you know?

00:41:10 Trista

You know who he is.

00:41:10 Merrily

Yeah, yeah.

00:41:10 Trista

Right. Yeah, yeah.

00:41:13 Trista

Extremely prolific, I'm actually doing.

00:41:16 Trista

His oh, I want to. I want to say it's called workbook of occult philosophy. So it's essentially so good. So good. If you're ready to to really do a daily practice for.

00:41:29 Trista

The year you go through, there's different lessons. It's literally just building on itself and.

00:41:36 Trista

Through that practice that I just talked about.

00:41:39 Trista

Letting it absorb and day, there's a lesson for each week of the year, including the equinoxes and the solstices, which are like the gateways and in the occult calendar. And so every morning you, whether you're at your altar or wherever you.

00:42:00 Trista

You know, go into a meditative.

00:42:01 Trista

State you read one paragraph.

00:42:04 Trista

And then you do discursive meditation which is.

00:42:09 Trista

Literally, meditation. If you think about the term premeditated.

00:42:12 Trista

It means thinking.

00:42:15 Trista

In the in the Western esoteric tradition anyway. So it's like reading a paragraph and then.

00:42:22 Trista

Pondering and considering it, I would say that is the majority of.

00:42:27 Trista

A cult practice and even magic. It's not so much the because I'm not very ceremonial. I'm not very ritualistic. I mean, yeah, I have an altar, but I'm. I'm.

00:42:37 Trista

I'm not that type of magician. It's really like, like we said, mental for me and most of the time, you're really just considering things really just letting things sort of.

00:42:52 Trista

And lay themselves into you is. That's how it works. It's not always through cognition. It's not always through the conscious mind. In fact, I would argue it that's very small part of it. Right, like 10% if anything.

00:43:06 Trista

Your dreams. It can absorb that way. I've been when I was taking Ben a bell. When's tarot class? Or whatever. I would have dreams about this certain.

00:43:14 Trista

You know, operation that she taught I was like, OK, like, I know something got in there. I don't know what it was, but like, something laid itself into.

00:43:23 Trista

Me. So that's that's another.

00:43:28 Trista

Book or author, I mean he he writes lots of great things and he's on a lot of podcasts as well, John like. So he's great to listen to and ooh, wealth of knowledge.

00:43:39 Merrily

Oh my God, that that man's brain. I do not know how it operates.

00:43:43

Like it is.

00:43:44 Trista

I don't know. He's like a living computer.

00:43:46 Trista

Yeah, it's insane, but really good. His other book that's really great to have is just the occult, and it's literally you. Do you have it? It's so good.

00:43:56 Merrily

Yeah, I have that.

00:43:56 Trista

Yeah. So it's just like art and like all these little historical snippets of a cult through the ages, such a good one to have too.

00:44:08 Trista

Trying to think of.

00:44:10 Trista

And I would actually say.

00:44:12 Trista

If anyone because this helped me out a lot, I found the Theosophical Society in Seattle. I don't know if you have two at Quest Book Shop in Capitol Hill if you're there.

00:44:24 Trista

They have a.

00:44:27 Trista

There's a theosophical library like in the back of the bookstore that you kind of have to know about.

00:44:35 Trista

But if, but if you if you go in there, I mean basically the Theosophical society encompasses like Rudolph Steiners teachings.

00:44:44 Trista

UM.

00:44:46 Trista

Alice Bailey as well, and basically it's like not. It's not one religion, they're they're studying.

00:44:56 Trista

Many different spiritual teachings and and and avenues basically, but it's all pointed at like how do we understand the divine? How do we understand our spiritual beingness as humans? So that's another. If there's a theosophical society around, that's a great resource.

00:45:17 Trista

Especially if they have a library, because you're just gonna have.

00:45:20 Trista

Access to so many sacred texts and so many authors and books, my favorite being Steiner, which I.

00:45:29 Trista

UM.

00:45:30 Trista

Still am reading and learning about anthroposophy and diving deep into.

00:45:39 Trista

His view on things he had just an incredible.

00:45:44 Trista

Understanding of the metaphysical and and you know, and anthroposophy as well. So I would definitely.

00:45:52 Trista

But I would definitely I would definitely recommend that for anyone who's seeking.

00:45:58 Trista

You know who is a seeker?

00:46:01 Merrily

Well, since you mentioned, OK, you mentioned two things and I'm going to connect them. I think you already know the connection, but you had mentioned the the esophageal society, we also mentioned very early on that our earnings story and I.

00:46:15 Merrily

Know I I.

00:46:17 Merrily

I'm pretty sure you probably know how they're connected.

00:46:20 Merrily

Is the author of the the story never ending story was a theosophist and so that's why.

00:46:30 Trista

Maybe I forgot if I did. Wow.

00:46:33 Trista

Rediscovered. Oh, that's so funny. That makes a.

00:46:34 Trista

Thank you for.

00:46:36 Merrily

Yeah, yeah.

00:46:38 Trista

Lot of sense.

00:46:39 Merrily

Especially I feel like a certain, you know, our age group. I know that there's like the young youngins of today that have also seen the never ending story. But I'm like, man, when you see that at like 5 years old that.

00:46:50 Trista

Imprints you didn't even know. We didn't even. Yeah, cuz all we had was movies and books. That's it.

00:46:55 Speaker 3

Yeah, exactly.

00:46:59 Trista

It's hard to explain pre Internet.

00:46:59

All we.

00:47:01 Speaker 3

I know they're like what like?

00:47:03 Merrily

You don't even understand there's effort.

00:47:05 Speaker 3

Involved in all of this.

00:47:08 Merrily

But yeah, I just wanted to mention that because like that movie so good. And then I know you mentioned Ben Bell when for sure and I had never heard of her. I feel like I probably has seen some folks talk about her tarot, but for whatever reason, I didn't look into it. So I looked into her tarot and I was like.

00:47:26 Merrily

Oh wow. Cool.

00:47:27 Merrily

She basically kind of she did a combination of the writer Wade Smith and then sort of the tout or soft deck.

00:47:35 Merrily

By Aleister Crowley was sort of like her jumping off point, and so I was looking through. I was like, Oh yeah, I can see what she was doing there.

00:47:42 Merrily

Of inviting those like weird *** Alister Crowley? Kind of the visuals that that are in that deck, but also the very symbolic stuff that is very I don't want to say obvious, but it's very in your face on the.

00:47:58 Merrily

Writer Wade Smith. Yeah, very traditional.

00:48:02 Merrily

So yeah, I was like, wow again. Like another great recommendation.

00:48:08 Trista

Yeah, for sure.

00:48:08 Merrily

Check out.

00:48:10 Trista

She her knowledge goes deep, deep, deep, deep, deep as well. You could spend forever on and she doesn't like to profit from it, which is interesting. She gives away a lot of things for free or super cheap, like her courses and things like that. So cool. Great resource.

00:48:18

Oh, nice.

00:48:26 Merrily

And so it was funny that you said I didn't realize that she was also an attorney, but somebody that I look at because we're gonna chat a little bit about astrology. That's.

00:48:37 Merrily

Somebody I've been looking at a lot lately is.

00:48:40 Merrily

Christopher Warnock and he's also an attorney. But I'm also an astrological magician.

00:48:47 Merrily

And so I.

00:48:47 Merrily

Was thinking about him because he does have like such a great grasp because he's an attorney. Like he can explain things in very.

00:48:56 Merrily

Simple terms that are like understandable.

00:49:00 Merrily

So I'm thinking I'm like, what are all these attorneys that are magicians?

00:49:05 Trista

Yeah, well, they can dive in.

00:49:05 Speaker 3

Like doing magical stuff.

00:49:08 Trista

They can dive into very arcane knowledge.

00:49:13 Trista

If I had to describe the law, like think about tax law, like what the, you know, it's like arcane is so hard to understand. Like, that's literally why we need attorneys for the most part because they can they. I mean, a lot of what they're doing is reading and understanding information and then using that in some way.

00:49:34 Trista

So I think maybe that's that's probably a connector like they're just able to understand large breadths of of knowledge and material. And can you know communicate that or utilize that?

00:49:48 Merrily

Makes a lot of.

00:49:49 Merrily

Sense. Yeah. Again, another sort of brain that is like.

00:49:53 Merrily

Like a computer. Very cool. So I know we had chatted about astrology. You had mentioned that you were interested in more of the Hellenistic astrology.

00:50:05 Merrily

I consider myself like I know a little bit more than the average person about astrology, so I definitely don't know what Helen is doing. Astrology is if you were able to explain.

00:50:17 Trista

Ah, no.

00:50:20 Trista

Yeah, I mean I I.

00:50:22 Trista

Am not a historian like don't don't quote.

00:50:26 Trista

You know the the dates and the facts or whatever, but.

00:50:31 Trista

Hellenistic is astrology is. It's also called traditional astrology. So now that we've talked about all of the hermeticism and a cult.

00:50:42 Trista

Its origins are actually it's said from, you know, from Hermes Trismegistus or from Hermeticism. And these practices, which is part of why like it.

00:50:54 Trista

It links in with that really beautifully. Like for me like it makes sense, but it was practiced at the at during the Hellenistic era around Greece and Egypt, so.

00:51:09 Trista

It's these ancient, ancient practices, a way of understanding.

00:51:14 Trista

Astrology and and utilizing it basically because it used to be a really practical thing like this is that you know in those civilizations this is just something that was taken as you know it's like the weather or it it's just what you do and that was lost for a long time mainly because a lot of the texts.

00:51:36 Trista

Were not translated into English, so it wasn't brought.

00:51:43 Trista

OK so.

00:51:44 Trista

Again, timelines are not my strong suit, but somehow it was lost. It was not brought into the West mainly because the the texts weren't being being translated, so the English speakers could, you know, understand or even know.

00:51:58 Trista

About these techniques. So what happened with what we know of as more modern psychological astrology?

00:52:06 Trista

That started to have a come up in the last, you know, the 20th century alongside psychology as well. So with young and with Carl Jung practices and everything else who he was also an would be considered an astrologer. He he studied astrology along with everything else he did but.

00:52:26 Trista

So while that was happening in the West like.

00:52:30 Trista

You know, 60s, Seventies, 80s especially. It was getting astrology was getting conflated with.

00:52:37 Trista

Psychology and being seen more as a personality examination or a way of explaining the the personality of the person or of the native.

00:52:49 Trista

And then as far as I understand, there was a group of of astrologers.

00:52:59 Trista

Somehow the translations of those ancient texts started to happen, and so they were. I don't know if they were, actually it was called project. Hindsight was.

00:53:10 Trista

This this group of astrologers that started translating and bringing that material back to the West essentially, and it was like, oh, there's this entire it was basically like getting.

00:53:22 Trista

This inheritance that we didn't know we had of how to practice astrology, which is more.

00:53:31 Trista

Not so much about ohh. The personality of the native it does. It does do that, but instead just shows.

00:53:41 Trista

And along with the techniques just shows.

00:53:45 Trista

The the basically represents the life of.

00:53:50 Trista

Of the native or.

00:53:52 Trista

Whatever it it may be, I mean the the native can be a person, it can be a country, it can be an event. And so these there is different techniques that were employed with traditional astrology that are are now known as far as timing, electional, astrology and also it's different.

00:54:13 Trista

Modern in that.

00:54:16 Trista

It really focuses on the seven traditional planets, not the outer planets, as rulers of of the signs and different techniques that can say kind of illustrate.

00:54:29 Trista

A person's chart more like.

00:54:32 Trista

Knowing the planet that rules the entire chart, which is the planet that rules the the ascendant.

00:54:39 Trista

Sign and terms like the sect, which is sect like.

00:54:45 Trista

If you're a born, if you have a day charter and night chart, if you were born during the day, the sun is the sect leader and Jupiter and Saturn have more of an effect or influence on your life. And if you're born at night, the moon is actually more. It's like the leader of the sector or more. What you're.

00:55:04 Trista

Sort of embodying and then Venus and Mars are the ones that you can lean into more that influence the chart in more of a beneficial way or stronger way. So there's a lot. There's many different techniques like that that.

00:55:19 Trista

You know we're.

00:55:21 Trista

Basically, since the 80s and 90s have been coming back into.

00:55:27 Trista

Have been have been introduced to the West and being incorporated again with astrology, so I hope that was conference.

00:55:34 Merrily

Yeah, that was very good. Thank you. Oh, man. Yeah. It's not easy kind of distilling these things down. So I'm, I'm.

00:55:45 Merrily

So happy that.

00:55:46 Merrily

You were you were doing.

00:55:48 Merrily

That so that's pretty great.

00:55:51 Merrily

How would you say?

00:55:54 Merrily

That you use astrology in your practice or in your day, or like, how do you use it for yourself?

00:56:02 Trista

Yeah, because I was.

00:56:03 Trista

Practicing for a while and giving readings, and I just realized this isn't what I'm. I mean, people were happy and everything, but I'm like, this isn't what I'm good at because I didn't like getting into.

00:56:13 Trista

The weeds with.

00:56:15 Speaker 3

That's a whole other.

00:56:16 Trista

You know, a whole other conversation about the ethics around doing readings, etc. Which I think should be regulated much like, you know, therapy.

00:56:25 Trista

But the way that.

00:56:27 Trista

I use it, I would say.

00:56:30 Trista

It's really about timing, looking at transits, which is.

00:56:36 Trista

The current planets and how they're moving in relation to your Natal chart.

00:56:41 Trista

Can just tell so much about what phase of life you're in, what things that you're being asked to focus on.

00:56:48 Trista

And again, going back to that community, communicating with the universe, it's my way of communing. It's one of the layers of data essentially, for communicating how the energy is is working inside me. You know what? I'm because that's the whole thing. I don't.

00:57:07 Trista

I don't believe that it's it's not a causal relationship. It's not. The planets are.

00:57:12 Trista

Doing something to me, it's.

00:57:13 Trista

Not bad. It's it's literally a a cosmic clock is what I.

00:57:13 Merrily

Right, right.

00:57:19 Trista

Call it it's. It's like the weather, it's.

00:57:21 Trista

Like a you know.

00:57:23 Trista

Just kind of checking to see, OK, what what time is it? Ohh, it's Saturn time and this this house.

00:57:29 Trista

And this part.

00:57:29 Trista

Of my life, you know? So I'm gonna.

00:57:32 Trista

I I think it it.

00:57:34 Trista

Really helps you to have.

00:57:35 Trista

Contacts. Like, really, that's what it boils down to. Like. I don't know how people function without it as.

00:57:42 Trista

Because it really is like not knowing the weather and then you go out without a raincoat when it's raining or something like that.

00:57:48 Trista

It just helps you be able to.

00:57:51 Trista

Structure life and not resist things that are that are happening because it does matter. Like what? What house? The planet is transiting and the houses are, you know, part of part of your life essentially where you're going to.

00:58:05 Trista

See those influences?

00:58:07 Trista

So that's how I use it.

00:58:10 Trista

Going forward, like just just as an example, you know right now it's always good to to see where where Saturn is transiting for 2 1/2 years. What part?

00:58:19 Trista

Of your chart, so right now it's translating my 6th house and you know at some point going to conjunct my son and my mercury and.

00:58:29 Trista

House is about.

00:58:31 Trista

It's pretty banal. It's pretty mundane, but it's.

00:58:34 Trista

Like the daily.

00:58:35 Trista

Life it's it's your routines. It's your.

00:58:39 Trista

Your physical health and the routines how the routines play into your physical health and the work.

00:58:45 Trista

That you do.

00:58:45 Trista

Like daily pesky stuff like or stuff, but and so I knew Saturn was, you know, has been moving through that part of my house. And I've had to really pay attention to.

00:59:00 Trista

Because, you know, I work from home. I.

00:59:01 Trista

Work at a desk a lot.

00:59:03 Trista

I also do art, so it's like I have developed certain.

00:59:11 Trista

You know things with my body that are telling me, like, hey, you need to pay attention to your, your, your posture, how you're using your body. You need to do these different. Like it made me drop doing yoga because I was having certain pains and, like, take up the like Chi Gong instead, like all these different like and their daily practices.

00:59:31 Trista

So anyway, not to get you into the weeds, but it's just it's I think that a lot.

00:59:37 Trista

Can be you can.

00:59:40 Trista

That's kind of a cheat code is. See where.

00:59:44 Trista

Especially Saturn, just because it's so it. It governs, you know, the physical time.

00:59:48 Trista

Boundaries. Things like.

00:59:50 Trista

That it's the easiest to see.

00:59:52 Trista

Yeah, but knowing that it makes me not freak out like, ohh what? Like I'm having chronic issues or whatever. It's like. No. Just you're being asked to have daily discipline in order to.

01:00:06 Trista

Evolve and and grow and so just, you know, look in different places or change up what you're doing rather than really resisting it and not knowing what's happening. So that's why I say I don't.

01:00:18 Trista

Know how people function without.

01:00:20 Trista

Astrology, because it's like it gives context to the life you know.

01:00:23 Merrily

Right.

01:00:25 Trista

So that's, that's the main reason the main way that.

01:00:29 Trista

That I use.

01:00:30 Speaker 3

Yeah, that's.

01:00:32 Trista

And of course, the fun of just seeing current events play out. It's like, Oh yeah, saw.

01:00:37 Merrily

That. Yeah, it's in there. Yeah. I liked how you explained it. Sort of like astrology is like the weather and and also articulating because Christopher Warnock talks about this too, that the planets aren't.

01:00:50 Speaker 3

Doing this to you.

01:00:51 Merrily

It's not like they're sending these rays down and like messing up your life or making your life better or whatever. It's just it's not necessarily how it works. So I think your examples were really.

01:01:03 Merrily

Perfect in explaining that, but I will say like in my sort of in my practice astrology like I didn't want to explore astrology initially. So like that's a lot of math and a lot of like degrees and a lot of like my brain cannot handle. However, as I go along it's becoming way more prominent.

01:01:25 Merrily

And the way I look at at least your initial like your birth chart, at least for me, when I look at it it it, it helps explain and like you said give context to like why why am I like this or like why am I like validation like OK yes this explains this.

01:01:39 Trista

Yeah, too, right.

01:01:45 Merrily

Why I do this?

01:01:47 Merrily

All the time and it's something I'm trying.

01:01:49 Merrily

To in that work, it's like the alchemy or whatever you it's a good map to go in and say here's where you need to alchemize this situation. So that's kind of what I use astrology, at least for my own.

01:02:04 Trista

Yeah, yeah, that's that's a great explanation. I would also add because I I have noticed like a trap that that can happen.

01:02:12 Trista

Don't. And this can't happen.

01:02:15 Trista

I feel a lot with with modern astrology too. Don't think that you.

01:02:21 Trista

Are it's hard to describe, but the chart is showing a snapshot of when you were born, the energies of when you were born. Yes, I feel that is showing like a patterning of this incarnation. If you want to look at it, you know that your soul.

01:02:41 Trista

Laid that out for you. Like here's a.

01:02:42 Trista

Map, but I don't like to ascribe to. Ohh.

01:02:47 Trista

I'm a you know this and that. So I'm always going to be this way because it can be really fatalistic, too. Yeah. Don't let it go into this fatalistic, you know, not not saying you were bringing that up, but I just. That's something that's become conscious for me throughout.

01:02:58 Merrily

No, no.

01:03:04 Trista

Studying it and and.

01:03:07 Trista

Sort of being in the.

01:03:08 Trista

Community and things like that. I you're not.

01:03:12 Trista

You're not tied to or trapped in any.

01:03:16 Trista

In any way.

01:03:16

Anyway, yeah.

01:03:17 Trista

It's literally just a map that was given like of energies that were given to that point. It's a point in time, you know? Yeah.

01:03:26 Trista

It's it's not like an it's not an identity thing. Don't think Alan has an identity.

01:03:29 Merrily

Right.

01:03:30 Merrily

Right. Because I think because as I was looking, you know again I'm.

01:03:36 Merrily

I'm not an astrologer, but I'm just looking at trying to mine my birth chart for things karmic things like you're talking about Saturn and stuff like. OK, I know that there's some karmic things that I need to adjust in my life, so I started with that with my birth chart. And as I was going through it, it was like cracking me up.

01:03:56 Merrily

One, it was like showing like ohh you're really into like occult practices and hidden things. And I'm like, Yep, Yep. Yep, Yep, Yep. OK, that makes.

01:04:05 Merrily

And then there were like, of course. And it gets to the point where it's telling you like in these situations you do this. And I was like, oh, my God, you're right. And it's more of, like, looking back about and seeing that pattern of, like, OK, yeah.

01:04:20 Merrily

So here's the area that.

01:04:22 Merrily

I might want to put some more energy.

01:04:24

Right.

01:04:27 Merrily

Yeah. So, yeah, I definitely, I and I, I totally agree. Like you don't want to just look at it and.

01:04:33 Merrily

Say, well, that's just.

01:04:34 Merrily

How I am and I guess that's how my life is, and I guess I'm just gonna be **** upon.

01:04:39 Merrily

Because my birth chart said that's what's gonna happen.

01:04:43 Merrily

Yeah, I totally get that.

01:04:46 Merrily

That caveat, so I.

01:04:47 Merrily

You know, we're kind of wrapping up for sure, but I did want to address because you're a Pisces and I'm a Pisces.

01:04:55 Merrily

And I don't know about you, but for me being a Pisces and the Pisces that I interact, I'll just say one we're good at a lot of stuff. Like I'll just put that out there.

01:05:07 Merrily

We're really good like.

01:05:08 Merrily

We'll get into it kind of just you.

01:05:10 Merrily

Know pick it up and we're.

01:05:12 Merrily

Really great at it. How do you?

01:05:14

Choose cuz this.

01:05:16 Merrily

Is my struggle and I.

01:05:17 Merrily

Don't know if you've had this.

01:05:18 Merrily

Struggle. But how do you?

01:05:20 Merrily

Choose where to put your focus on.

01:05:23 Trista

Oh my God, I know.

01:05:26 Trista

It's taken all my and I mean it gets older it it gets better with age. Definitely. Like just in my starting my 40s and like oh, wow. OK, now I get where.

01:05:39 Trista

I need to put.

01:05:40 Trista

What is best? Because you you have the experience of, OK that didn't workout.

01:05:44 Trista

You know, right.

01:05:45 Trista

And it has.

01:05:47 Trista

There's so many different factors beyond the sun sign too. That's like, that's what I've kind of learned.

01:05:56 Trista

But yeah, as far as.

01:05:59 Trista

There's so many other factors because.

01:06:02 Trista

Yeah, your sun sign is just one.

01:06:05 Trista

One element of your chart, like I kind of already said, I actually have a night chart, so luckily or not luckily, because it's in detriment. My moon is in Capricorn, so that's always helped me.

01:06:17 Trista

To focus on practical, pragmatic matters and.

01:06:23 Trista

Do the work essentially and and things like that, but I know it it. It definitely is a struggle to because Pisces is so.

01:06:33 Trista

It's everything. It's the ocean. It's it's just.

01:06:37 Trista

Can be anything be anyone you want to be.

01:06:41 Trista

Et cetera. But actually I feel like what helped me and I'm not trying to open another can of worms, I just want to mention what actually helped me to function.

01:06:51 Trista

And to put my energy in specific places, is human design honestly? Because I don't know if you've cracked the book on or whatever cracked.

01:07:01 Trista

That open yet but.

01:07:04 Trista

Learning that and I've talked with a lot of people who like astrology, can be sort of abstract. The human design is much more like this is your energy type and try these things. Experiment with using your energy.

01:07:18 Trista

In this way.

01:07:20 Trista

And that can be really validating and really helpful, but that helped me actually to function and know where.

01:07:26 Trista

Where and what is right for me and my energy and?

01:07:30 Trista

What isn't? If that makes sense?

01:07:32 Merrily

Totally, yeah.

01:07:34 Trista

So I would say a collection of like experience.

01:07:38 Trista

Trying things and they don't work. I mean, that's another way that the universe communicates with you. Like if things don't work out.

01:07:43 Merrily

Right.

01:07:44 Trista

Or you keep getting.

01:07:46 Trista

Doors shut in your face or?

01:07:47 Trista

Whatever. OK, don't go that way. Yeah, so.

01:07:50 Trista

Probably like talking.

01:07:52 Trista

Again, like communicating with reality in your own way and just knowing.

01:07:59 Trista

Knowing yourself and I feel like that's.

01:08:02 Trista

Mysticism and occult practice really is for any spiritual practice is to know yourself and to really understand and read your body. Read your energy when something is really draining your energy.

01:08:14 Trista

You know, don't do that. And if something is just really getting you going, then.

01:08:19 Trista

Follow those things and that does take time, yeah.

01:08:24 Merrily

Well, thanks for. Oh, yeah, for sure. Yeah. Yeah. Basically all all of what you said totally resonates. But again, getting better. You know, we're in our 40s.

01:08:36 Merrily

Like you know, so a halfway point hopefully so.

01:08:40 Merrily

Yeah, gotta like.

01:08:41 Trista

It feels good. It's like OK.

01:08:43 Speaker 3

Ohh yeah.

01:08:43 Trista

Now I know.

01:08:45 Merrily

Exactly like, OK.

01:08:47 Merrily

Yeah, for sure. Oh, my gosh. Yes. Now, I I have all the experience now.

01:08:49 Trista

Now I can do the things.

01:08:52 Merrily

It's time to do the.

01:08:53 Merrily

Things. So Speaking of that, can you talk about your, your creative businesses that you operate and manage?

01:09:02 Trista

Yeah, right now.

01:09:05 Trista

So again, it was another kind of experiment, but I started a.

01:09:10 Trista

Basically, a cult clothing shop. I mean, which is just print on demand. So it's like T-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts and things like that, but.

01:09:18 Trista

I like to blend esotericism and sacred.

01:09:22 Trista

You know axioms, especially from Hermeticism, with just everyday clothing, and it's been really great. I started on Etsy and people. I'm just I'm so grateful and I attract like the coolest customers too. But people are really appreciative of finding something that.

01:09:40 Trista

Is meaningful, you know, or that has meaning behind it. That again, isn't just like trying to like still rebellious, but that isn't like just being rebellious. For for the sake of it or.

01:09:52 Trista

Whatever, but that has.

01:09:54 Trista

A deeper.

01:09:55 Trista

Meaning yeah, perhaps. And also to kind of like signal, you know, to the others when you're out there, people will be like, hey, you know, noros or something or.

01:10:03 Merrily

Ohh right.

01:10:06 Trista

Like, hey, you know.

01:10:07 Trista

Yeah. So that's been really fun. That actually it was funny cuz that I have a fashion design degree and.

01:10:15 Trista

That actually brought together.

01:10:17 Trista

And I was a web developer and you know different like brand designer and things like that. So it just really brought all of my past skills.

01:10:25 Trista

Together and and it's been really, really fun. So that's one of my.

01:10:32 Trista

Business I've always got like a few.

01:10:35 Trista

Businesses or business ideas going on, so that's that's one of the ones I'm focused on right now to.

01:10:42 Trista

You know, kind of grow it and make sure that it finds the people that appreciate those things. So yeah, thanks for thanks for asking.

01:10:51 Merrily

And that was, uh, lucida and Mystica is the.

01:10:54 Trista

Lucida mystica. It's just lucid, Mystic.

01:10:58 Trista

With an A on the end of each word mystica.com.

01:11:03 Merrily

Beautiful. Yes. And so lucidamystica.com is where folks can find your wares. But is there any other way? If somebody wants to reach out to you, how they can connect with?

01:11:16 Trista

Yeah, I would say just my my Instagram. Your dot sovereign dot self is the username that I still I don't post a lot anymore, but it's just where my.

01:11:30 Trista

You know, I keep my friends and things like that.

01:11:34 Trista

So if you want to reach out.

01:11:35 Trista

You can DM me there.

01:11:38 Merrily

Umm, So what words of wisdom? Or you know, I've also been saying mantra or.

01:11:44 Merrily

Some some phrase that gets you by that you reach to UM that you'd like to share.

01:11:54 Trista

This is why I started my podcast that was called liberate yourself. As in two words, yourself and yourself.

01:12:03 Trista

Know thyself is really everything. I think always comes back to that. The Oracle Delphi was was right.

01:12:10 Trista

And really, my words of wisdom at this point.

01:12:15 Trista

Would be, you know, especially when.

01:12:17 Trista

You just get started and you're wanting to.

01:12:20 Trista

You're absorbing so much information, you're taking it all in. You're reading the books and all the podcasts and everything.

01:12:27 Trista

At a certain point, it's time to.

01:12:31 Trista

Put that down and.

01:12:35 Trista

Really. Cultivate your relationship with reality and how you interact with it. Reality as in the universe, guides whatever you want to call it your higher self.

01:12:47 Trista

Because we're we're each equipped to be able to get information and get wisdom individually in our own way, and it's not going to like the books and the teachers help I feel. But it helps point us to that.

01:13:04 Trista

You know, so in the end that's.

01:13:06 Trista

That's what I really want to.

01:13:09 Trista

What I've learned and what I wanted to.

01:13:11 Trista

Hammer home is.

01:13:11 Trista

Just really learn to trust yourself and not adhere to any.

01:13:17 Trista

Anyone else's?

01:13:19 Trista

Framework completely, but that just knowing that they're all guides and teachers that are.

01:13:25 Trista

There pointing you.

01:13:27 Trista

Back to yourself, essentially, if that makes sense.

01:13:30 Merrily

Oh yeah, that's perfect. Well, great words to live by. Uh, so thank you so much, Trista, for joining us today and.

01:13:43 Trista

Yeah. Thanks for having me.

01:13:47 Merrily

Your support means the world to us. If you've been joined this podcast, please take a moment to like, comment and share it with others who might.

01:13:54 Merrily

Find this content valuable.

01:13:55 Merrily

And of course, don't forget to hit that subscribe button to stay tuned for more enlightening discussions. Your engagement helps us grow, and we appreciate each and every one of you. Thank you for being a part of.

01:14:05 Merrily

The Casual Temple community.

#casualtemple #hermeticism #hermetic #occult #occultphilosophy #magick #spiritual #spirituality #astrology #bookreview #metaphysical

EPISODE 8 - TRISTA DEDMON

AUDIO:

VIDEO:

SYNOPSIS

GUEST LINKS

HOST LINKS

BOOK NOTES

TRANSCRIPT